Add just enough oil to fully coat the pan bottom
Use enough oil to cover the entire cooking surface in a thin layer without deep-frying.
Pour in oil until you can tilt/roll it to coat the bottom and you don’t see bare metal spots. You don’t need a large volume—just full coverage for even searing.
The short version
- Coat the bottom completely; no bare metal showing.
- You don’t need a ton of oil.
What goes wrong
Using too little oil so parts of the pan are dry
Add enough oil to fully coat the bottom.
Why it works
A continuous oil film improves contact and heat transfer for even browning and reduces patchy sticking.
Put it to use
Learn next
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